How to get rid of anxiety without medication

Anxiety attacks are...odd. When you realize you're having one all the puzzle pieces just fit together but until that point you feel a bit crazy. I've centered a large part of my work around reducing anxiety but I am still prone to it. We all are. I hope my story will help you recognize the signs and give you a few tools for moving it out of your body without medication.
First, a little science. Anxiety is the inability to predict or control an outcome. It's a literal anticipation of something bad happening without it happening. Anxiety is the fear of the unknown. Your brain is just locked in survival mode until the threat passes. In the world of anxiety attacks these threats are not physical rather mental and emotional threats.

For example - being overworked or overwhelmed by life circumstances. Major life transitions like a new career, a new city, a loss, or a divorce. Mis-alignment in your life or not living on purpose. It can also be the consumption of someone else's pain or problems like watching a friend go through a break up or caring for an ill loved one.

Chronic anxiety can lead to more severe problems like panic attacks, chronic pain and fatigue, headaches, indigestion, irritability, depression, and brain fog or memory loss. All in all, these are not fun symptoms and yet I'll sit down with a new client and learn they've been living with chronic stomach aches or severe headaches for decades.We just aren't putting the pieces together.

Instead we go looking for answers and help in fixing a physical ailment. But the symptom isn't the problem. The root is. Thanks to a lot of new research and comprehensive books like this we're starting to see a bigger picture of what's going on.

Ok, now for a short story. When the healer has an anxiety attack she realizes how human she is...I'd been having symptoms of anxiety for a couple weeks but wasn't putting the pieces together. It usually takes one major instance or attention grabbing experience to get you to tune in.

I had been having face twitches, stomach pain, and cluster headaches. I didn't think much of it. I am a sensitive person and heal for a living - sometimes other people's pain seeps in.

Then I started having dizzy spells and trouble reading and writing. Dizziness wasn't new but brain fog was. Your body will amp up the symptoms until you take note.

Then I wrote this article here a couple days ago and was quite proud of it. I am notorious for grammatical errors and even have an editor help me once in awhile. I re-read everything many times before publishing or emailing my readers. It took me extra long to write because of my brain fog but I was inspired so I kept going...and then the next morning I read it.

It was FULL of errors, odd sentences, and misplaced words. The trouble was, I hadn't seen any of this and could barely comprehend the sentences even when reading them back. It got my attention.

Even I got scared. Do I need a brain scan? Should I go to the walk-in clinic? Should I Google my symptoms? We look outside ourselves first and assume we're sick.

Thanks to my partner and one panic-y call to my mother I self-diagnosed myself with an anxiety attack. This isn't my first anxiety attack but you quickly forget the signs. Your body can be quick to heal when you give it space to do so. This is exactly what I did for the next three days.

I don't like taking medicine when I know I don't have an infection that requires it. Anxiety is not an infection. It's fear. The only antidote to anxiety is showing your brain and body that you're safe.

What caused my anxiety? It's a combination. Most anxiety attacks are a build up of not acknowledging that something's off or is too much. I traveled for work and sat in a dimly lit conference room with 250 people for 2 days. Overwhelm. Went from 55 degree weather, to 90 degrees, to 30 degrees. Unpredictable. As well as a few other oddities that just needed a break. Your body usually just needs a break.

My 10-Step Solution for Healing Anxiety:

#1 - Remove yourself from the environment that's causes anxiety OR stop doing what's making it worse. (more on this in another post!)

#2 - Technology cleanse and no aggressive or violent television

#3 - Find your journal

#4 - Replace caffeine and alcohol with water and herbal tea

#5 - Go be in nature

#6 - Meditate or find space for a deep breathing exercise

#7 - Ask for support

#8 - Let your body grow heavy and exhausted

#9 - Rest, rest, rest

#10 - Be mindful of reengaging with your environment or what was causing the anxiety

I get that taking anti-anxiety medicine is only one step. But it doesn't actually resolve the anxiety. It just numbs it and subsequently numbing other parts of your life that need your attention and care.

The 10-Step Solution above works for me every single time. It only took 2 days for my anxiety symptoms to completely disappear. And I took one more day for good measure. I'm sure you have questions! Leave them in the comments below or reach out to me privately by clicking 'contact' above.